GIVINGTUESDAY HOW to ORGANIZE a MATCH for YOUR NONPROFIT December 1, 2020
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GIVINGTUESDAY HOW TO ORGANIZE A MATCH FOR YOUR NONPROFIT December 1, 2020 Page 1 Introduction For organizations that are fundraising, one of the most effective tactics in the GivingTuesday toolbox is “the match” - the limited window creates a sense of urgency to convince a donor to act fast for greater impact. Plus, in an increasingly “odd” year-end season, a match could be a great way to activate your major donors. Bonus read: How to Engage Your Major Donors During GivingTuesday What’s a match? Match funding is an incentive tool that uses the pledge of one person (or group) to inspire other donors to participate and collectively give a specific amount in response – the match – to support an organization or cause. The premise is that every donation made by a supporter is doubled or more. Matches are often either capped at a certain amount or time period; both create urgency, which is critical to a matching challenge. Matches are a great incentive for donors to give. It doesn’t have to be a lot of money in the match pool. The ratio of the match doesn’t matter all that much either – studies show that 100% (1:1) matching ratio (and even ratios as low as 30- 50%) are more effective dollar for dollar than higher matching ratios. What about those matches I keep reading about on The Internet? Ahead of GivingTuesday, some companies and brands offer match programs as their way of giving back. These matches can also give your campaign a boost, but we encourage you to think of this type of match as more of a ‘bonus’ than a more specific match you can advertise to your donor base. The GivingTuesday Team will always keep you apprised of any match opportunities via our social channels and e-newsletter. We strongly encourage you to read all rules and instructions before deciding to participate in one of these programs. In this toolkit, we’re talking about how to create your own match that will be guaranteed to your organization. Page 2 Where to Find a Matching Donor ● Major Donors: Take a look back at your largest donors from last year’s event or campaign and give them a call. Pitch the idea of either doubling or tripling the impact of the gift they were probably already planning on making at EOY. You can pool several donors’ gifts together to create one larger matching challenge. ● Board Members: Challenge your board to come together to pool a match fund out of their regular give/get. Ask them if anyone in their network would join in. ● Foundations: Ask your current foundation supporters if they’d consider using their discretionary fund to provide a small match to your organization (and all of the other orgs they fund too!) ● Vendors/Sponsors: Did you cancel your gala this year because of COVID-19? Check in with your vendors or sponsors to see if they’d consider putting up a match (see below for a case study from a nonprofit that raised $46,000 against a $17,000 goal by doing this!) ● An Influencer or Local Celeb: No, we don’t mean Oprah. We mean a local celebrity or micro-influencer who you normally work with who’s passionate about your cause. How to Structure Your Match for Success There are all kinds of different ways to organize your match. The bottom line is that you should organize your match to in a way that can help you achieve the goal of your #GivingTuesday campaign. For example, with different rules in place, a match campaign can increase the total amount given, the number of givers, and/or the average donation size. Consider these different categories of goals and their implications. Note that the types of goals are not mutually exclusive - a campaign can hit on multiple types of goals. (From The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Matching Grant Playbook) Page 3 Goals to Raise Revenue Goal Example Increase the Total Amount Given A campaign could establish a fundraising goal with a match amount to be made available if individual donors collectively raise a specified amount Increase the Total Number of Givers A campaign could be structured with few restrictions, such as being open over an extended period or making a larger match amount available, both of which enable more individual donors to give Increase the Average Donation Size A match campaign could offer to only match individual donor contributions that are at or above a certain dollar amount, encouraging each individual donor to give more Unlock Specific Funding Streams A campaign could require a certain amount to be raised in order to unlock funds from different types of revenue sources, such as government grants Goals to Influence Behavior - More Than Just Writing A Check Goal Example Create Repeat Donors A match campaign can offer a % match for a one-time donation or a higher % match for donors who pledge a recurring monthly gift Target a Specific Audience to A campaign could target a specific Change the Demographics of geographic area or design its marketing Support efforts to reach a specific target audience and influence them to get involved with a charity or cause Increase Other Assets or Capacity Dollars could be matched every time an for a Match Recipient individual donor pledges an amount and also provides their email address, increasing the match recipient’s email database. Page 4 Develop Match Funder Partnerships A pledged match from a foundation could be used to inspire other high-net-worth individuals or foundations to pledge as well, and in so doing, establish a meaningful relationship between the new funders and the match recipient Increase the Distribution of Funding Particularly around events, like GivingTuesday, matches can be structured so that more organizations can be identified and receive funding, allowing donations to spread to more diverse match recipients Goals to Raise Awareness Goal Example Raise Awareness of the Cause / Org. A match funder could provide matching Increase the Community Buy-In dollars based on individual respondents visiting a designated website, making a donation and adding a personal story about why they support the cause Increase the Visibility of a Funder A match funder seeking to establish their reputation for working with a specific cause could provide an annual matching gift that is recognized with accompanying outreach and messaging Other Ways to Access a Match This is a shameless plug to get signed up with your local GivingTuesday movement - often the leaders of these campaigns organize local matches, prizes, or contests for your geographic area or issue area. They’re also a joy to be a part of. 11 out of 10 would recommend participating in a GivingTuesday Community campaign. Page 5 Draft Email to a Potential Match Provider Timing: send during early GivingTuesday planning Subject Line: Can you help us propel momentum on GivingTuesday? Dear MAJOR GIVER NAME HERE, We’re excited to participate in GivingTuesday to help kick-start [ORGANIZATION NAME]’s giving season. I’m writing to ask for your help as we are thinking about strategies to leverage GivingTuesday to amplify the work of [ORGANIZATION NAME] to new audiences. Research shows that even a small matching or challenge grant makes a big difference with new, lapsed, and younger givers. These are among our key goals on GivingTuesday. We would like to spur additional engagement and attract new supporters with matching funds or a challenge grant. As a generous supporter, you know how important our work is to the community; we would like to grow our base of individuals who step up to fund our life-changing work. I would appreciate an opportunity to share with you our specific GivingTuesday goals that a matching gift would help us to achieve. Thank you for being among our most dedicated supporters. Your giving has a significant impact on our mission to [INSERT PHRASE ABOUT YOUR WORK]. I'll follow up with you to discuss this exciting campaign. Thank you so much for your commitment to our work! Sincerely, [YOUR ED] Page 6 Case Studies In the Spring of 2020, Project Hope Worldwide had to cancel its gala due to COVID-19. Like many organizations, they raise the bulk of their budget from their gala and were very worried about what fundraising might look like for them this year. The organization called the folks who would have normally sponsored their gala to ask if they’d consider pooling a match fund for their upcoming“Give Hope From Home” #GivingTuesdayNow campaign. This group of major donors enthusiastically pulled together a $17,000 match fund. Paired with a p2p strategy, the match helped Project Hope Worldwide raise $46,000 in 24 hours to support their mission. Learn more about Project Hope Worldwide’s success in our recent interview with their development director. Red Clay Dance Company, an Afro-Contemporary dance company in Chicago, pooled a matching fund from their board of directors for their GivingTuesday 2019 campaign and raised their largest amount ever. They paired their match with a storytelling strategy that showcased stories told from the youth they serve. Can’t Get Enough About Matches? Big Tips for Securing Matching Funds (The Seattle Foundation) Your Guide To #GivingTuesday Matching Funds (Global Giving) The Matching Grants Playbook (The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation) Prep Now for GivingTuesday Matching Donations (Wired Impact) Keep Us Posted! Don’t forget to let the GivingTuesday team know your plans so we can help amplify your work! Drop us a line at [email protected] or @ us on your favorite social media platform @GivingTuesday. Page 7 .